Middle East crises loom in background as NATO leaders gather in Washington While this year's summit is expected to focus largely on the ongoing war in Ukraine, Iran's military support for Russia and Turkey's strategic balancing act with Moscow are expected to weigh on NATO leaders gathered in Washington. Washington Pulse
US, Israel hold second virtual meeting on Rafah Biden administration officials have denied offering to green-light an Israeli invasion of Rafah if Israel holds off on retaliating against Iran. Washington Pulse
One year on Sudan’s war: 14,700 killed, 8.6M displaced, 4.9M face starvation As the war in Sudan enters its second year, the humanitarian situation is worsening by the day with no prospects of an imminent end of the hostilities. North Africa Pulse
State Department staffer resigns over Biden's handling of Gaza Annelle Sheline is the second State Department official to publicly resign since Oct. 7, citing the erosion of US credibility on human rights in the Middle East as a result of the war. Washington Pulse
Assessing Bahraini-Syrian encounter in New York Bahrain Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa's meeting with his Syrian counterpart leaves observers questioning its position on the Syrian crisis. Saudi Arabia
Kurdish rebels join anti-Iran lobbying fray An Iranian Kurdish opposition group has registered to lobby Congress and the Donald Trump administration. Congress
Egyptian documentary filmmakers eye international festivals Egypt's film industry enjoys high visibility, but the country's documentary filmmakers struggle with lack of funding and red tape. Egypt
Palestinian author honored for children's ode to Jerusalem Palestinian author Mahmoud Shukair's latest work has been named one of the top 100 children’s novels around the world, another victory in a banner year for Palestinian literature. Palestine
Three years in Syria, Russia sums up achievements and challenges On the third anniversary of the Russian campaign in Syria, Foreign Minister Lavrov summed up Moscow's achievements but conceded challenges persist. Syria
Iran FM: Trump ‘repeating the same mistakes’ Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the Donald Trump administration is repeating the same mistakes that led to the US invasion and occupation of Iraq and growing chaos and instability in the Middle East. Iraq
Pence pressure prompts USAID to appoint liaison for Iraqi Christians USAID has appointed a special representative for the beleaguered minority group following intense pressure from the vice president. Iraq
Raki bottles tell story of Turkey's changes The story of raki under the Justice and Development Party is the story of Turkey’s Islamic conservative transformation in a nutshell. Turkey